The planning of the Louisiana Clinical and Translational Science Center (LA CaTS Center) is an initiative undertaken by three institutions of the Louisiana State University (LSD) System (LSU A&M, LSU Health Sciences Center in New Orleans (LSUHSC NO) and the Pennington Biomedical Research Center (PBRC).The planning phase will lay the foundation for the submission of a Clinical Translational Science Award (CTSA) application. The applicant institution and leader of the planning effort is PBRC, a model of clinical and translational research and strongly committed to advancing the enviroment for clinical and translational researchers in the region. The Planning Phase will serve to assemble key leaders in clinical and translational biomedical research, in research administration and in graduate education in order to plan for the content, governance, administration and evaluation of the LA CaTS Center and to manage the necessary organizational and cultural changes needed to implement the program. The planning phase also allows for communication about the process via a website and at meetings in New Orleans, Shreveport and Baton Rouge, so as to encourage support and involvement across the state. The long term vision for the LA CaTS Center is to engage clinical and translational researchers throughout the state, with the LA CaTS Center serving as a platform to supply research resources to translational researchers throughout Louisiana. The LA CaTS Center will expand the clinical and translational research base, and can help foster the rebirth of clinical research in New Orleans. The process for developing the LA CaTS Center is projected to require three phases: Planning, Start-up and Outreach. The vision for the LA CaTS Center is not only to expand the research base from existing levels, but also to improve efficiency and speed of clinical research. This effort is greatly needed at this time due to the disruption of the clinical and translational research and graduate education infrastructure by Hurricane Katrina. The LA CaTS Center will develop innovative multidisciplinary graduate education programs with a goal of advancing discovery by training individuals in multiple areas at the interface of disciplines. In addition to activities serving Louisiana, the LA CaTS Center will serve as an incubator to foster the development of innovative tools and information technologies that can benefit the field. [unreadable] [unreadable] [unreadable]